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taught by Holy Scripture, Fathers, our own Divines. 23

for our sins, to offer, as a tranquillity of the world; High Priest, our prayers, for kings; for soldiers and and sacrifices, and inter- allies; for the sick; for the cessions to the God of all." afflicted; and, in a word, for Whence St. Cyril does not all who stand in need of hesitate to use the word succour, we all supplicate propitiation" of the Eu- and offer this sacrifice." charist, in a passage in which My own belief I expressed he is speaking of the great at a time very eventful_to Eucharistic intercession 7: me, in the words of Bp. "Then, after the Spiritual Wilson: May it please Sacrifice is perfected, the Thee, O God, Who hast Bloodless Service upon that called us to this Ministry, Sacrifice of Propitiation, we to make us worthy to offer entreat God for the common unto Thee this Sacrifice for peace of the Church, for the our own sins and for the

7 Cat. 23. Myst. v. § 8. Oxf. Tr.

8 Sermon I. on Absolution, p. 3, 4.

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9 Sacra Privata. Sundry Meditations, before service begins. [It is taken probably from Heb. vii. 27, but perhaps is also a reminiscence of the Liturgy of St. Chrysostom, with which it corresponds; "Make us fit to offer unto Thee gifts and sacrifices for our sins and the ignorances of the people. So also S. Jerome, in Ep. ad Tit. i. 8, "What is to be thought of the Bishop who hath daily to offer spotless sacrifices to God for his own and his people's sins?"] Add ibid. "We offer unto Thee, our King and our God, this Bread and this Cup. We give Thee thanks for these and for all Thy mercies; beseeching Thee to send down Thy Holy Spirit upon this Sacrifice, that He may make this Bread the Body of Thy Christ, and this Cup the Blood of Thy Christ; and that all we, who are partakers thereof, may thereby obtain a remission of our sins and all other benefits of His Passion.

"May I atone Thee [Ed. 2. fol. 1782. Other Ed. have 'atone unto Thee.' The former is probably correct, atone' being so used for to 'appease'] by offering to Thee, O God, by offering to Thee the pure and unbloody Sacrifice, which Thou hast ordained by Jesus Christ. Amen."

And ibid. Wed. Medit. Lent. Meditations proper for a Clergyman. "Give me such holy dispositions of soul whenever I approach Thine Altar, as may in some manner be proportionable to the holiness of the work I am about, of presenting the prayers of the faithful, of offering a spiritual sacrifice to God, in order to convey the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ-the true Bread of Lifeto all His members. Give me, when I commemorate the same sacrifice that Jesus Christ once offered, give me the same intentions

24

Eucharistic Sacrifice-Bp. Wilson.

sins of Thy people." I will Ministers here on earth, for add now, in lieu of many the same ends, viz., the apothers, the words of Oxford plication of all the benefits Divines, edited and revised of His sole meritorious by Bishop Fell: "As also Death and Sacrifice on the He hath instituted the same Cross, till His second return oblation of His Holy Body out of this heavenly sancand Blood, and commemo- tuary."

ration of His Passion, to be I believe most entirely, made in the holy Eucharist that "the Offering of Christ to God the Father by His once made is that perfect

that He had, to satisfy the justice of God, to acknowledge His mercies, and to pay all that debt which a creature owes his Creator. None can do this effectually but Jesus Christ: Him, therefore, we present to God in this Holy Sacrament."

The following are extracts from Bishop Wilson's MS. notes, in his own hand, in the "Sacra Privata," now about to be published. Works, vol. iii. p. 219.

By setting the memorials of Christ's Body and Blood before God, we show that we ourselves do remember His death, and beg God to remember His death in favour of us, now and whenever we pray to Him for His Son's sake."

Mr. Johnson's Unbloody Sacrifice.

"The true and full notion of the Lord's Supper is, that it is a religious feast upon Bread and Wine, that have been offered in sacrifice to Almighty God, and are become the mysterious Body and Blood of Christ.

"Our sins were laid upon Christ, as they were upon the sacrifices under the Law, in order to be expiated by the shedding their blood." Ends of Sacrifice.

"To render our prayers more acceptable to God for what we pray for.

"As a grateful sense of favours received.

"For procuring pardon for sins committed.

"To acknowledge the power of God to whom we offer. "To render Him gracious to the worshippers.

"To keep communion with Him.

"But above all,-That it might be a perpetual memorial of the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ for the sins of the world. By which He reconciled us to God, obtained our pardon upon our repentance, grace to amend our lives, an happy death, and a blessed resurrection. The commemoration of this Sacrifice the most prevailing argument we can make use with God for these things.'

"Paraphrase and Annotations, done by several eminent men at Oxford, corrected and improved by the late Right Rev. and Learned Bishop Fell."-On Heb. v. 10.

In it we plead to God the One meritorious Sacrifice. 25

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redemption, propitiation, Lord's Passion in act, a and satisfaction for all the Memorial of it, not to oursins of the whole world, both selves, but to God. It has original and actual; and its efficacy, because Christ there is none other satisfac- has appointed it; because, tion for sin, but that alone." in His abiding Priesthood I cannot but believe (since after the order of MelchiseI continually repeat to Al- dech, He pleads, in Heaven, mighty God) that our what He has commanded Lord Jesus Christ made us to plead on earth; and upon the Cross a full, per- the prayers which we offer fect, and sufficient sacrifice, are then most heard, when oblation, and satisfaction the "pledges of His love" for the sins of the whole lie before God. We plead world." I do not believe to the Eternal Father the Inthat any other sacrifice is finite Merits of His Son, meritorious, or in itself pro- that Infinite Price, which, pitiatory, i. e. that it has a by His precious Death, He value of its own, apart from made for our Redemption. the One Sacrifice, to propi- We present before Him, not tiate God. But I believe mere bread and wine, but that He who "did institute, that which, without physiand in His holy Gospel cal change of substance, command us to continue, a consecrated by the words of perpetual memory of His our Lord and the power and Precious Death, until His grace of God, is verily and Coming again," does look indeed, not carnally, but graciously upon, and pre- mystically, sacramentally, sent in Heaven, the Memo- spiritually, and in an ineffarial which we make on earth. ble and supernatural way, The Eucharistic Oblation the Body and Blood of our expresses, in action, the Lord. In Field's 2 words, same as, in words, the Con- paraphrasing the Ancient fession wherewith we close Prayer, "We offer to Thy each prayer," through Jesus view, and set before Thine Christ our Lord.' It is eyes, the Crucified Body of something out of ourselves, Christ Thy Son, which is above and besides our pray- here present in mystery and ers. It is a pleading of our Sacrament, and the Blood

2 Of the Church. Appendix to Book iii.

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Christ's Sacrifice pleaded in it to the Father.

.....

which He once shed for our ceive our prayers," as, in sakes, which we know to be the great Eucharistic prayer that pure, holy, undefiled, in the Ancient liturgies, the and eternal Sacrifice, where- Church_besought God for with only Thou art pleased; all. "I join with Thy desiring Thee to be merci- Church," says again good ful unto us for the merit and Bishop Wilson, "and plead worthiness thereof, and so the merits of Thy Sacrifice to look upon the same sa- for all estates and conditions crifice, which representa- of men: that none may detively we offer to Thy view, prive themselves of that hapas to accept it for a full dis- piness which Thou hast purcharge of us from our sins, chased by Thy Death :—for and a perfect propitiation: all Christian Kings and Gothat so Thou mayest behold vernors ;-for all Bishops us with a pleased, cheerful, and Pastors; . . . . . for all and gracious countenance." persons and places in disIn St. Ambrose's words, tress by the sword, pesti"Christ is offered upon lence, and famine, &c." earth, when the Body of I have made this stateChrist is offered; yea, He ment, wishing to make clear Himself is shown in us to my meaning, rather than the offer, Whose word sancti- use of a word. The word fies the sacrifice which is which your Lordship objects offered. And He Himself to is, "propitiatory." It is present for us as an Ad- has been used, as I said, in vocate with the Father." a good or bad sense, accordThis was the time when, ing as persons have taken it. both in the Ancient Church In two places only, as far and in our own, the most as I know, have I retained solemn prayers for the well- the words "propitiation" or being of the Church were "propitiatory;" but in both, offered to God. Our own in order to prevent misunprayer for the Church Mili- derstanding, I added (by tant follows herein the An- the advice of a revered cient Church. We pray Al- friend, whom, being in mighty God to "accept our doubt, I consulted) or dealms and oblations, and re- precation," or "depreca

3 In Ps. 38. § 25.

4 Short Introduction to the Lord's Supper.

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Meaning of Prayers in “the Paradise" evident. 27

tory". The prayers them- read a Roman Catholic wriselves sufficiently explained, ter. On this doctrine, that the word was limited taught as it is by our Dito the sense which Mr. Dods- vines in succession, your worth assigns to it, "as ap- Lordship makes no observaplicatory to the One Sacri- tion. Not to your Lordship, fice of the Cross," "This 5 who are familiar with our do I now present and offer old Divines, but to explain unto Thee, O Holy Father! to others my teaching, I now that in this Commu- would set down the words of nion I renew the remem- Bishop Taylor.

brance of It." "I beseech "It is the greatest solemThee for Thy Mercy's sake, nity of prayer, the most and for the merit of that powerful liturgy, and means Propitiatory Sacrifice which of impetration, in this world. was finished on the Cross, For when Christ was consethat thou wouldest put away crated on the Cross, and befrom us all stumbling-blocks, came our High Priest, havtemptations, perils, occasi- ing reconciled us to God by ons of sin, by which Thou the Death of the Cross, He foreseest that we may be led became infinitely gracious in again to sin.” "And all the eyes of God, and was these [the sufferings and admitted to the celestial and Death of our Lord] do I eternal Priesthood in Heaoffer unto Thee as the sa- ven, where, in the virtue of tisfaction for my sins; and the Cross, He intercedes for that, by means of this sacri- us, and represents an eternal fice, that by virtue of it, Sacrifice in the Heavens on Thou mayest impart to me our behalf. That He is a the virtue and efficacy of Priest in Heaven, appears in those Sufferings, and merci- the large discourses and difully forgive my offences, rect affirmatives of St. Paul. and take not vengeance of That there is no other Samy sins." crifice to be offered, but that This teaching I learnt on the Cross, it is evident, in our own Divines and in because He hath once apthe Fathers long before I peared, in the end of the

5 Paradise for the Christian Soul, Part V. p. 47, 48. 54.

6 Worthy Communicant, Chap. I. sect. iv. A similar passage of Bishop Taylor is quoted by the Bishop of Oxford, Eucharistica, p. 216, 217.